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- 2016
The role of protein Z and protein Z-dependent protease inhibitor polymorphisms in the development of prosthetic heart valve thrombosisDOI: 10.14744/AnatolJCardiol.2016.6719 Abstract: Protein Z (PZ) is a vitamin K-dependent factor, which is mainly synthesized by the liver. It acts as an activator of a serpin, namely, protein Z-dependent inhibitor (ZPI), which inhibits factor Xa. In human plasma, ZPI is present in more quantity than PZ, and PZ and PZI are present as a complex in circulation. Individuals have a wide range of normal plasma PZ concentrations, which may be partly explained by genetics (1, 2). The A-13G polymorphism in the promoter of the PZ gene, G-103A in intron A, or G-79A in intron F is associated with decreased plasma PZ level. The potential role of alterations in PZ and/or ZPI levels in the pathogenesis of thrombotic and/or hemorrhagic diseases has been previously investigated in several studies (3, 4)
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